epstein



Jan. 15, 1929.

w.:' c1 EPs-fein mcmmm'ox; FOR GARBAGE'. AND' 'rim LIKE Original Filedpct. 26, 1925 'l 2 sheen-sheet 2 .c. ERSTE/N.

Reissued Jan. 15, 1929. y

UNiTEn sa'riatii:sl

P NT OFCE.

WILLIAM C. EPSTEIN, OF DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR T0 THE DUO-TORMANUFACTURING COMIANY, OF DAYTON, OHIO, ACORPORATION OF OHIO.

INCINRATOR FOR GARBAGE AND THE LIKE.

Original. No. 1,643,206, dated September 20, 1927, Serial No. 64,812,led Get'ober 26, 1925. Applica-tion for reissue led November 30, 1928.Serial No. 322,933.

This invention relates to an incinerator for garbage or the like and oneobject of the invention is to provide a domestic incinerator which willbe simple in its construction, eflicient in its operation and which canbey opern ated at a relatively low cost.

A further obj ect `of the invention isy to provide such an incineratorin which the burners willnot be liable to be clogged by ashes l orfalling pieces of refuse, and which will be otherwise of such acharacter that it can be easily maintained in an operative condition.

y A further object of the invention is 'to provide such an incineratorhaving associated therewith a water heater in which the water will beheatedvby the saine flame which consumes the garbage and in which thegarbage will not come in contact with the heater.

A further obj ect of the invention is to provide an incinerator in whichthe garbage will be subjected to the drying action ofheat during theintervals between burning operations.

A further object of the invention is to pro.- vide such an apparatuswhich can be easily manufactured and assembled and so produced at arelatively low cost.

Other objects of the invention will' appear as the apparatus isdescribed in' detail.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of anincinerator embodying my invention and showing a portion i of the watertanlrin elevation; Fig. Qis a section taken on the line 2--2 ofFig.` 1Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

d Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

In these drawings I have illustrated one embodiment of my invention andhave shown the same as comprising a housing which, in the present formof the apparatus, consists of a cylindrical body portion 1 preferablyprovided with a lining 2 of asbestos or other heat insulating material.This body portion of the housing issupported at its lower end on a base3 which may, if desired, be provided with standards or legs 4 to supportthe housing in a slightly elevated position. A top casting 5 is securedto the upper end of the cylindrical body portion 1 and is provided withan outlet 6 for products; of cornbustion and with an inlet 7 which isclosed vby a hinged door8, the door and the top casting havingoverlappinganges to provide a 'ight closure.

Mounted within the housing., which constitutes a combustion chamber, isa hopper 9 which is` preferably supported at its upper end on thehousing, has its side walls spaced some distance from'the walls of thecylindrical body portion of the housing and terminates a short distanceabove the base 3. The walls of the housing are perforated, as shown at,10, to permit the passage of heatand-to` give the hopper more or less ofthe` characteristics of a grate. I have here shown the hopper as havingits upper y'end flared so that the top of the hopper is of a diameterrsubstantially equal tothe interior diameter of the cylindrical portionof the housing and the hopper inayhavel at its upper end an outwardlyex.- tending flange 11 which rests upon the upper end of the cylindricalbody portion of the housing. If desired, the hopper may be made in aplurality of sections 12 each of the body portion of the housing and thetop n casting and serving toconnect the three parts one to the other.The transverse slots 13 permit the easy assembling and positioning ofthe sections of the hopper, and enable the hopper to be made more orless roughly, as by casting, and assembled without the necessity of anexact positioning of the several sections.

The several sections may be of a combinedk width slightly less than thetotal circuinference of the hopper as it is not objectionable to have aspace orslot between the edges of the adjacent sections, and in thismanner the assembly of the hopper and its mounting inthe housing isgreatly facilitated. The hopper is provided at its lower end with aclosure 15 which is preferably perforated.

`As here shown, this closure is circular in form and is provided aboutits peripheral edge with an upstanding flange 16. which yforms a seat toreceive the lower ends of the several sections of the hopper. Eachsection of the hopper is provided withA a slotted lug 17 which issecured to the closure llby meansof f abolt'18,thereby rigidlysecuringthe closure to the hopper and rigidly connecting the lovver endsof the several sections of the hopper and maintaining the latter' intheir proper relation one to the other. The closure 15 has a centralportion 19 extending upwardly into the hopper to a point some distanceabove the loWer end of the hopper, this upwardly extending portion beinghere shown as dome shaped. The dome shaped portion of the closure isspaced from the side Walls of the hopper so that it Will ext-end intoand be surrounded by the garbage which is to be consumed. The upwardlyextending portion of the closure is also perforated and preferably theperforations are in the form of slots 20 formed in the lateral portionsthereof and the central top portion of the dome is unperforated.

Mounted beneath the hopper and, in the present apparatus, arranged inthe lower part of the cylindrical portion of the housing, 1s a burner 21which is preferably annular 1n shape and is arranged beneath the sideWalls of the hopper. The burner may take various forms but it isdesirable that the gas openings or jets should not be formed in the topWall thereof as this Would permit them to be clogged by ashes or fallingpieces of refuse. I have here shown the burner as comprising tWo annularportions rigidly connected one to the other and spaced slightly apart toprovide annular slots 22 and 23 between the inner and outer edges,respectively, of the tWo parts of the burner. Thus the gas jets extendlaterally and are so arranged that the ashes or other matter Will notdrop into the same. The burner is connected With a suitable source ofgas supply by means of a supply pipe 24. I also prefer to provide an ashpan 25 to receive the ashes falling from the hopper and, in the presentinstance, the pan is provided With flanges which rest upon and aresupported by flanges 26 Yforming a part of the base 3, thus permittingthe pan to be easily placed in and removed from its position under theburner.

In the use of the ordinary incinerator the garbage is deposited in thehopper from time to time as it accumulates and When the hopper issufficiently filled the gas is lighted at the burner beneath the hopper.The time re quired for the consumption of the garbage depends upon thequantity and the character thereof but after the garbage has beenconsumed the attendant must return and shut o the gas and if theattendant forgets or neglects to do this the burner Will operateVuselessly and the gas vvill be Wasted. To avoid the necessity 'for thisattention I have provided the incinerator with means for automaticallycontrolling the operation thereof so that all that is required of theattendant is to deposit the garbage in the hopper. The character of thecontrolling means is such that it will not only cause the burner tooperate to consume the garbage but will also partiallyl dry the garbagebefore and between burning operations, thus rendering the same morecombustible. The controlling means may take various forms but in thatembodiment ofthe invention here illustrated I have associated with theincinerator a Water heater, which may, if desired, be a part of adomestic Water heating system and which is so arranged that the WaterWill be heated by the same fire Which consumes the garbage, and the heatgenerated by the burning of the garbage itself Will also heat the Water,thus accomplishing two results, that is, the incineration of the garbageand the heating of the Water, With a consumption of gas little or nolgreater than Would be required to accomplish one of those results. Theburner is automatically controlled to maintain the Water at a relativelyhigh temperature and when the burner is not in operation this WarmWat-er Will heat the combustion chamber and cause the evaporation ofmoisture from the garbage, thereby partially drying the same.

As here sho-Wn, a T.vater heating coil 27 is supported about the hopper9 between the side Walls thereof and the Walls of the cyliir drical bodyportion of the housing, this coil extending for substantially the fulllength of the hopper and being spaced both from the hopper and Jfrom thehousing and thereby arranged in a position in which it will be subjectedto heat from the burner 2l, Will be entirely out of cont-actv with thegarbage and ivi-ll not interfere With the free passage of the heatthrough the openings in the hopper. rIhe Water heating coil is connectedat both ends With a Water tank 28 which may be of any suitable characterand a portion only of which is here shown, the arrangement being suchthat the Water in the tank 1vill circulate through the coil and back tothe tank." Frel erably the burner is automatically cont-rolled tomaintain the Water in the tank at the desired temperature and the heatnecessary to maintain the Water at this temperature is also suicient toconsume the garbage in the hopper. As here shown, the gas supply pipe 24has interposed therein an automatic valve 29 With Which is operativelyconnected a thermostat 30 which projects into the tank and serves toopen the valve and admit gas to the burner when the temperature of thewater tank falls below a predetermined degree and to again close thevalve when the Water has been raised to the desired temperature. Suchvalves and thern'iostats are Well kno-Wn in the Water heating art and itis not necessary to here illustrate or describe the same in detail. Asupplemental gas pipe 3l leads from the supply pipe 24, on the outerside of the valve 29, to a pilot burner 32 arranged adjacent to the mainburner 21 and here shown as arranged centrally thereof and directlybeneathl the unperforated topper# j tien of the domef19'.' By' this`arrangement of the pilot burner the. topportion ofthe dome preventsashes or refuse from falling into the pilot burner and clogging thesame.

The: operation of the apparatus will be readily understood from theforegoing description and it .will beapparent that the pilot burner 31will be normally7V lighted and that gas will be admitted to the` main,burner at intervalsfdetermined by the temperature of the water in thetank. rIlhe flame from the burner rising about the` outer side of thehopper andenteringthe dome. shaped portion 19,` serves not` only to;`heat the'water` in the' coil 27 but also to consume the garbage in thehopper. It is not essential that` the burner should burn long enough atyany one time to consume all the garbage but the garbage may bedeposited in thehopper in such quantity and at such times as maybedesired and as the burner operatesfrom time to` time to heat the waterit will consume the garbage. There isusuallya` more or less definiterelation bef tween the amount of hot water used in a home and the amountof garbage accumulated and consequently the burner, will operate atsuf-- ficiently frequent intervals to consume the garbage within areasonable time.y Even if no hot water is beingfused the burner willoperate at intervals due to the lowering of the temperature of thelwater by radiation.

The construction of the apparatus is such that no fumes or o dor canescape 'from the i apparatus into the room in which it is located andall products of combustion are carried to the exterior of the` housethrough the outlet 6. If desired, a packing of heat resistinglmaterial,such as asbestos, may be inserted between the closure 8 and the flangesurrounding the opening to more tightly seal the joint. j

It is customary with many people to burn their garbage in the furnaceduring the winter months, and under such circumstances the incineratorwould not be needed but it `would be desirable to retain the waterheater in operation. This can be done, as the device will operate as awater heater at all times regardn less'of whether or not it is used asan incinerator but in order to concentrate the heat more effectively onthe water pipes a -shield y33 of heat resisting material may be insertedin the hopper to close the openings therein.

While I have shown'and described one 'enibodiment of my invention I wishit to be understood that I do not desire to be limited to the detailsthereof as various modifications may occur t0 a person skilled in theart.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desireto secure by Letters Patent, is: 1. Inv an apparatus of the characterdescribed, a housing having an inlet at the upper end thereof and aclosure for said inlet,

a` hopper supported within said housing, spaced from the side wallsthereof and havingvperforated side walls, said hopper having itsopenupper end arrangedy adjacent to said inlet and having its lowerendnearthe lower end of said housing, a perforated closure for the lower end ofsaid housing, having a domelike portion extending; upwardly into saidhopper for a relatively short distance from the bottomthereof and spacedfrom the side walls thereof, said dome-like portion of said closurehaving its lateral*y portions perforated and the upper central partimperforate, a main burner supported beneath said hopper, and a pilotburner supported beneath the imperfo-rate part of the upwardly extendingportion of said closure.

2. In an `apparatus of the character described, a housing, a hoppersupported in said housing and spaced from the side walls thereof, aburner supported beneath said hopper, a water heating coil supportedabout said hopper between the same and said housing, a tank with whichsaid coil is connected, and means controlled by the temperature of thewaterin said tank for controlling the operation of said burner. i

3. In an apparatus` of the character described, a housing having aninlet at the upper end thereof and a closure for said inlet, a hoppersupported in said housing with its open upper end adjacent to said inletand having apertured side walls spaced from the side walls of saidhousing, an apertured closure for the lower end of said hopper, a mainburner arranged beneath said hopper, a water heating coil wound aboutand spaced from said hopper,y a tank having circulating connection withsaid coil, a valve to controly the flow of gas to said burner,athermostat operatively connected with said valve and extending intosaid tank,v and a. pilot burner supported adjacent to said main burner.

4. In an apparatus of' the character described, a housing having aninlet at the upper end thereof and a closure for said inlet, a hoppersupported in said housing with its open upper end adjacent to said inletand having apertured side walls spaced from the side walls of saidhousing, an apertured closure secured to the lower end of said hopper,

a burner arranged beneath said hopper and having jets arrangedrespectively beneath said'closure and beneath the space between saidhopper and said housing, a water heats ing coil supported in the spacebetween said hopper and said housing, a tank having circulatingconnection with said coil, a thermostat mounted in said tank, and avalve controlledby said thermostat to control the flow of gas to saidburner.

5. In an apparatus of the character de'- scribed, a housing, a hoppersupported in said housing and spaced from the side walls thereof, aburner supported beneath said hopper, a water heating device comprisinga part extending about said hopper, and means controlled by thetemperature of the water in said heating device to control the operationof said burner. y v

6. In an apparatus of the characterl dei scribed, a hopper, a waterheating device comprising a part surrounding said hopper and spacedtherefrom, a burner arranged beneath said hopper and said part of saidwater heating'devce, and means controlled by the temperature ofthe waterin said heating device to control the operation of said burner.

7. In an apparatus of the character described, ,a hopper to receivematerial to be consumed, a water heating device in heat receivingrelation to the hopper, a main burner arranged in operat-ive relation tosaid hopper and said water heating device, a valve to control the supplyof fuel to said main burner, a pilot burner adjacent to said mainburner, and means controlled by the temperature of the water in saidwater heating device to open and close said valve.

8. In an incinerator, a structure having a combustion chamber, a hopperto support the material to be consumed in said combustion chamber andhaving openings to establish communication between the same and saidcombustion chamber, an automatically controlled burner arranged belowsaid hopper and means controlled in accordance with the temperaturewithin said combustion chamber to cause fuel to be supplied to saidburner.

9. In an incinerator, a structure having a combustion chamber, means tosupport the material to be consumed in said combustion chamber, a burnerarranged below said material supporting means, an automatic vvalve tocontrol the supply of fuel to said burner, and a thermostat to actuateSaid valve and ber and a combustion chamber about said refi i usechamber, the casing walls separatinof said chambers havingV openingstherethrougdi for chamber intercommunication, a burner beneath said-chambers, and a thermostatic valve for the burner fuel supply control,influenced by the temperature in said combustion chamber, opening thefuel supply to said burner when the temperature in the combustionchamber falls below a predetermined degree. Y

l2.-In an incinerator, a casing structure providing communicatingconcentric chambers, comprising an inner refuse incinerating chamber andan outer combustion chamber, a burner beneath said chambers, a Waterheater element within said combustion chamber, and a thermostatic valvefor burner fuel supply control in connection with said heater element,to cause said valve to open when the temperature in said heater elementreduces a predetermined degree, said heater element constituting anelement of a hot Water service unit.

In testimony whereof, I alf'lx my signature hereto.

WILLIAM C. EPSTEIN.

